Green Thumb
by newraven
Summary: Buttercup's punishment for beating up a cheater is to care for the school garden. There, she meets a certain green rowdyruff who she hadn't seen in a long time. One-shot and companion story to "Basketball Blues" and "Caught Red-handed".


**I don't own powerpuff girls.**

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"Stupid. _Stupid._ This is so dumb," Buttercup ranted as she watered some flowers. Okay, so she was holding onto a watering can with water in it and just flinging it around more than watering the plants, but you've got to give the girl credit. It wasn't long ago when she could finally tell apart roses from lilies.

Buttercup cursed Principal Ken under her breath. _He _was the one who punished her. The one who forced her to do _gardening _as a consequence. _I don't even see why I have to be punished,_ Buttercup thought. _The other team was totally cheating, and the referee didn't even do anything! What was he, blind? Or deaf? And what was I supposed to do? Just sit there when injustice was right before me? Of course I did what anyone would do. Beat the cheater up. I would've thrown in a punch or two (or at least some screaming) for the referee, but Bubbles and Blossom dragged me away. Meddlesome sisters. _

But Buttercup was glad that her sisters pulled her away before it got even more serious. She would've been in even bigger trouble. She still remembers the pep talk Principal Ken gave her. Mimicking him in a squeaky high voice, she says, "Buttercup, you need to control your temper and learn to love your peers as if they were your sisters and brothers. I think what you need is some calming outlet. I know! You could take care of the plants! They are simple to take care of and I'm sure you would enjoy your partner's company. Blah blah blah. I believe in you Buttercup!"

Buttercup thought that Principal Ken enjoyed toying with her, and secretly liked when she got into trouble just so he could give her some cruel punishment. That couldn't be farther from the truth. Principal Ken actually dreaded dealing with Buttercup; afraid her violent nature would take over without her sisters to keep her in check. Principal Ken was wrong, though, because Buttercup is good at heart, and the only type of people she beats up are rule/law-breakers.

"HEY PRINCESS! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" Thundered a voice, clearly trying to insult her by the use of "princess". Buttercup spun around snarling, feeling sorry for the person yelling at her. She was just not. In. the. Mood. And _no one _called her _that_. Her snarl dropped in surprise when she saw it was Butch who was yelling at her. Likewise, Butch stopped yelling almost instantly he saw Buttercup. It was silent for a while, and then Butch broke the silence, "What are _you_ doing here?"

Buttercup replied in the most civil tone she could, "This is my punishment."

Butch didn't press further, and instead said, "I haven't seen you in awhile. Still wrestle like a girl?"

Buttercup brushed off his insult, "That's because I am one. What's your excuse?"

They stared unblinkingly at each other for a while, the tension in the air palpable. Suddenly, they started laughing. Their laughter was the kind that could shake buildings, and the students within a 100-meter radius of them quickly scurried away in fright. Buttercup and Butch grasped each other's hand and hugged. That "manly" sportsmanship hug every athlete worth his (or her) salt does.

Butch admitted, "It's nice to see you. Now I finally have someone who can fight me in hand-to-hand combat without admitting defeat in 10 seconds. And my brothers don't count."

"Ditto," Buttercup agreed with a nod. They started chatting about their life after their rivalry. Finally, Butch asked, "So, why are you punished?"

Buttercup explained in excruciating detail of the injustice befallen onto her. Butch sympathized with her. Buttercup suddenly came to the realization that _Butch_ was her "partner". She voiced her realization and Butch hesitated (only for a split of a second) before nodding in confirmation.

Buttercup asked, "So why are you here? Trip an old lady?"

Butch glanced nervously around, and leaned in close to Buttercup. "Can you keep a secret?" Butch whispered.

Buttercup nodded. She wasn't very experienced at keeping secrets (she didn't have many), but she despised gossip. Butch confided, "Gardening is my hobby. I potted and raised all of the plants here."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Buttercup boomed. She laughed until tears came to her eyes and she was clutching her aching stomach, overworked by laughter. Butch got steadily angrier.

"Hey! Don't LAUGH!" Butch yelled. He lunged at her, which Buttercup was unprepared for, and they fell into a heap. Buttercup quelled her laughs into chuckles and pushing Butch off of her, she said, "Don't get so riled up. I was just surprised."

Butch muttered, "Yeah. Cause when I'm surprised I just happen to laugh manically. Yep. Totally normal reflex."

Buttercup finally stopped even her chuckles long enough to survey the garden. It wasn't a great beauty. She was sure even Professor could plant a garden in a more neat and fashionable way. But the plants were cared for and tended to, and the chaotic structure suited her tastes more than neat, boring rows of uniform flowers. She complimented, "Good work Butch. It's a nice garden."

"Thanks. And sorry I yelled at you earlier. But you really shouldn't wave your watering can around like that." Butch replied.

"What? Afraid I was gonna kill your flowers?" Buttercup taunted.

Butch slightly tensed, "Hey, don't make fun of my plants."

"Wanna have a fight? Come on, you owe me after pushing me." Buttercup asked. Butch was slightly taken aback by the randomness, but grinned and nodded.

"You bet," Butch replied. "Best out of three?"

Buttercup agreed, and they stood two feet apart, both in an attacking stance. The first round, Butch won. Buttercup's defense was weak and Butch took advantage of that, defeating her easily (or as easily as you can defeat a powerpuff).

The next round, Buttercup defeated Butch. She made sure her defense was solid, and her punches packed with power. Finally, she finished him off by using a move she invented. A punch so powerful it knocks you flying into the sky. She liked to call it "propeller". That is, until she could think of a better name. In fact, one of the reasons she wanted to fight him was to try out this move. It was successful, sending Butch flying out into the sky until he was just a little green dot. He flew back down with a wounded pride and was fired up to beat her in the next round.

The third round took far less time. Buttercup now confident in the power of her "propeller" knocked Butch up in the air within 2 minutes of starting. This time, Butch landed and said, "Dude, you've got to teach me that."

Buttercup grinned and replied, "We'll see. Now about these plants….."

Butch confidently said, "Step aside, princess. This is my area of expertise."

In a flash, Butch was flying in the air again. When Butch hit the floor, he asked, "Hey! What'd you do that for?"

Buttercup cracked her knuckles and smiled sweetly. "Don't call me princess."

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**Please review! I welcome comments, complaints, constructive criticism, and compliments. Also, here is a challenge to y'all out there. Can you think of a phrase with the word "red" in it?**


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